“woodland enchantment!”
This heavily wooded park adjoins the Sam Houston National Forest and encloses the 210-acre Lake Raven. The park offerscamping, hiking, biking, boating (motor size unrestricted; speed is limited to idle speed), guided horseback trail rides with horses provided by 2E Stables, fishing, swimming in an unsupervised swimming area, canoe and paddle boat rentals, and nature study.
Reviews of Prairie Branch Camping Area
27 people have reviewed this location
Ratings Summary
Cell Coverage
Verizon 4G/5G
Confirmed by 14 users | Last reported on February 03, 2023AT&T 4G/5G
Confirmed by 11 users | Last reported on September 01, 2022T-Mobile 4G/5G
Confirmed by 5 users | Last reported on September 01, 2022For East Texas, this park is great.
no big views, or challenging rock face to scale.
This is all about 2 maybe 3 things, camping, boating and a nature trail hiking path.
the campgrounds are normally clean, I have seen some times when it is lacking, most of those times are after big holidays and peak of summer when there are to many people and not enough clean up crew. the tent campsites are a little close to one another, but not so much that its a big deal. some have power, and there are also like cabanas or huts or whatever-they-are-called structures you can rent. They are probably 30-40 years old and are showing their age. also bring your own BBQ or stove, if you are planning on cooking. as the camp "BBQ" pits are those crap 3 sided open top steal boxes with a cattle guard over the top with 30 years of grease on them.
If you are RVing here let them know if you are a novice driver or that you cant back into a spot and they are usually able to get you a spot that is a little easier to get into. There are a few spots I've seen folks get stuck after going down a road that has a hard turn they are not willing or able to do and then there a row of cars behind them and it becomes a CF for a few minutes until, A) someone stops traffic and lets them back out, or B) a more skilled RV driver comes and rescues them. as a lot of parks many RV spots are dirt, and some have a tree or 6 blocking long slideouts. usually the place is very friendly.
The nature trail is a very entry trail that is suposably somewhat wheelchair accessible. there are more hiking trails that are mellow and show off the lake and forest nicely. with the park being part of the Sam Houston Forest, the nature trails connect to the more challenging trails in the forrest. there are some 30 miles of trails in the forest, and is much more wild than the maintained trails of the park. you can get lost in there very easily. so bring a GPS, also there is no cell coverage so pack a signal incase you are in distress and the trails are lightly used and rarely patrolled if at all.
If you go in the spring or fall the place is very relaxing and the temperatures are perfect!
This place is huge and you can do a little of everything. Hunting, fishing, hiking, riding atv's, etc. The workers are parking nazi's though, so make sure to pay the fee and place your ticket stub on dash!
We stayed over Easter weekend 2015. Had a spot right on Raven lake. This is the prettiest Texas state park we have stayed in so far. Green everywhere. Towering trees. Trails thru the forest.
Nightly Rate: $23.00
Days Stayed: 3
Site Number: 145
Cell Coverage Rating
AT&T 4G
We planned on only staying overnight but after a beautiful morning run through the park, we couldn't not stay another night to soak in the tranquility. It was empty, albeit partially a reason for our enjoyment - but the bird watching, fishing, trail system, and prime kids biking may have even been worth it if it were crowded. We honestly could stay here for a week if we weren't getting kicked out bc of Presidents Day Weekend.
Nightly Rate: $25.00
Days Stayed: 2
Site Number: 58
Cell Coverage Rating
AT&T 4G
We spent one night here on our way to Corpus Christi SP for our winter trip. Even though it was pouring rain for most of our visit we really liked this park.
Our site did have something to be desired in that is was on a slope and had stairs which are a bit of an issue for me to navigate.
It has been a couple of years since our visit so my memory is not fresh but I did shoot some video of our visit and it can be seen here...
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLV3OUUap8JeAqOISylnZlgWO-TajYlxU-
Nightly Rate: $20.00
Days Stayed: 2
Site Number: -
Very clean well maintained park.. Staff is friendly and helpful.. Lots of well maintained trails for hikers.. But unfortunately for us the outer perimeter trails were closed for repair due to Hurricane Harvey.. :( We will be back again.
Nightly Rate: $20.00
Days Stayed: 7
Site Number: 153
Cell Coverage Rating
Verizon 4G
Sunday night stay, 5/20/18. Non-electric site with water.
$5 per person entry fee, in addition to the camping fee.
Free wifi at the Nature Center (and outside too).
This is a nice state park with easy access right off I-45. We wished we could have stayed longer to kayak the lake, but it was only a one-night stopover. We arrived at night (in a thunderstorm), and a very friendly volunteer was in his truck at the park entrance. He told us to pick a site and return to the office in the morning to register.
Bath house in the non-electric area was nice, clean, had showers, hand dryers & flush toilets. Sites came with picnic table, fire ring or pedestal grill, and lantern hook. We noticed most sites were somewhat sloped. The campground map shows only 22 pull-through sites; the rest are back-in of varying sizes. Arriving on a Sunday night, the campground was almost empty. The host did confirm that it gets busy on weekends.
Noise was not an issue; you could hear only distant highway traffic. There were birds, squirrels, and were told there were alligators in the lake (although, not to worry - "they're scared of people"). The campground is pretty with tall trees, but no brush vegetation or shrubbery between sites providing privacy (in the section we stayed in). There are two campground areas, each on points that jut out into the lake.
Nightly Rate: $15.00
Days Stayed: 1
Site Number: 65
Cell Coverage Rating
AT&T 4G
This is a beautiful park, and if our plans had been different, we would have extended our stay. We stayed in a W/E site for $20 a night (second night half off with our TX state park pass $70 a year, covers entrance fees). Site 148 was a concrete pad, and relatively level (easy to adjust with blocks) and spaced nicely to the lake and other sites, which was true for most the sites we saw. The park is clean and well kept, including a dock for fishing and various trails for bikes and hikes. We took the check-in rangers advice on selecting a site (TX booking doesn't allow site selection in advance but will next year), and while ours worked out fine, we probably would have chosen otherwise if we'd seen the park first (the camp host was a bit surprised that we weren't placed elsewhere). Aside from that, our only complaint is that even with a boost our T-mobile coverage was pretty weak.
Nightly Rate: $20.00
Days Stayed: 2
Site Number: 148
Cell Coverage Rating
T-Mobile 4G
We camped here along with a couple of other friends. After finding what we thought were nice spots in the Raven Hill campground, we proceeded to set up. Our two sites were wildly unlevel. Our friends had an RV that levels itself and by the time it was done, the front wheels were off the ground. About that time, one of the neighbors pulled out, so we took their two spots. Again, our site was very unlevel. Our friends then found after getting all leveled out that their sewer connection was actually uphill rendering it virtually unusable.
There are a couple other areas that are not full hookups, but we did not check those out. It could be they are a bit more level. My impression of this park is it is aging and could use some sprucing up. However, it is a setting lovely park set in a mature pine forest with an abundance of birds.
While I would camp here again, there are many other Texas State Parks that I prefer.
Nightly Rate: $25.00
Days Stayed: 3
Site Number: 10
Cell Coverage Rating
Verizon 4G
sometimes you don't have to go to far. this is the closest state park to me and i have been neglecting it for some reason. we finally decided to go in early May and we will be coming back regularly. this is a HUGE park with many many miles of trails. the swimming area is great. sites have plenty of trees although you do see your neighbors, that being said, the sites are spaced pretty far apart so there is some level of privacy. we had a direct view of the lake. the site was not level side to side, so it took a bit of leveling, maybe 10-15 minutes. they have store with snacks/drinks by the swimming area. they also had a snow cone truck, although i don't know how regular that is. this is a gorgeous park.
Nightly Rate: -
Days Stayed: 2
Site Number: 17
Cell Coverage Rating
Verizon 4G
AT&T 4G
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Prairie Branch Camping Area
Hours
- Mon - Fri: 9:00 am - 6:00 pm
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Good for bird watching, fishing, and 2 more activities.
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Parking
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Pets Allowed
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Restrooms
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Wifi
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Wheelchair Accessible
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Credit Cards Accepted
- Affiliation
- State park or forest
- Back In RV Sites Count
- 92
- Last Nightly Rate
- 23.0
- Longest Vehicle Length Reported
- 40.0
- Lowest Nightly Rate
- 15.0
- Max Length
- 45ft
- Max Stay
- 14
- Pull Through RV Sites Count
- 18
- Sites Count
- 166
- Standard Tent Sites Count
- 166
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Paved Sites
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Fifty Amp
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Full Hookup
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Rec Facilities
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Pull Through
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Tent Sites
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Dump Station
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Big Rigs
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Open Seasonally
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Age Restricted
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Back In RV Sites
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Boondock
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Cabin Sites
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Dispersed Sites
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Firewood
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Fulltime Residents
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Group Tent Sites
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Laundry
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Mobile Homes
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Permit Required
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Potable Water
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Propane
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Public Water
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Pull Through RV Sites
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Reservations
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Sewer Hookup
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Showers
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Sites
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Standard Tent Sites
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Vehicle Wash Permitted
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Water Hookup
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Outdoor Seating
Campground, Parking, Dining, Restrooms
Nearby Hotels
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